Category Archives: Fruit

I haven’t had a sip of orange juice since I was about 13, which means that it’s been a bit over a decade since I last tried this luscious drink. For the better part of the last decade though, I had no idea what I was missing out on. Then in December, I was overcome by an intense and insatiable craving for orange juice, and of course, I gave in.

The juice of my dreams

Once I had my first sip there was no turning back. Drinking orange juice is like having an angel in your mouth, and I can’t believe I’ve been drinking anything else all these years. As much as I’d like to keep a juicer in my bedroom and squeeze myself cups and cups of this delicious juice, the truth is, I’m not drinking that much of anything that has 110 calories per serving…especially if it’s not alcoholic (a mimosa just may be the answer to my prayers!)

But for the occasions when a mimosa isn’t appropriate, Tropicana has made a product to solve all my problems: Trop50 Orange Juice. With only 50 calories per serving, this is the perfect juice option for someone who doesn’t want to waste all those calories on a drink. Trop50 certainly doesn’t taste like traditional orange juice– it’s much thinner and you can kind of taste the added Stevia (sorry, Tropicana, it’s true.) But everything else I drink has artificial sweetener…so what’s one more drink! And Trop50 comes in 8 flavors, including apple and pineapple mango. I’m heading to the supermarket right now to stock up!

I know that I’ve been blogging a lot about apple-related snacks lately. And now that I think about it, I’ve blogged about Apple Pie Gum, an apple flavored popcorn, and City Snacks, which I particularly like in the apple variety. Based upon this information, one may think that I’m an apple fanatic, especially as I sit here typing this on my Apple computer, with my iPad and iPhone not far from my reach. But the truth is that my affinity for the fruit goes no further than the confines of SkinnyOffice– despite popular belief, I do not spend my free time scouring the globe for the tastiest apple-flavored snacks. All these apple snacks, and the one I’m going to introduce you to today, just seem to fall into my lap more often than they might for another person.

The way I discovered Brothers-All-Natural Fruit Crisps (the apple kind) was certainly strange. It was last winter, and I was maneuvering a wide cart through the narrow aisles of an Asian grocery store down in the Financial District. I had picked up my dried seaweed, my Hi-Chew candies, and a 1/4 pound of honey-maple turkey. And then for some reason that I still cannot grasp, I threw a small pouch of some unknown snack into my cart. Even more curious is that the package had Mickey Mouse on it, who I do not like even the slightest bit. The Mickey snack just caught my eye, and at that moment I knew I had to have it!

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!

When I arrived home and tore the picture of Mickey’s head in half as I tried to reach the snack deep inside, I realized that what I had bought was just freeze-dried apples in kid-friendly packaging. They were delicious. I let each dusty sliver of apple melt on my tongue and as it transformed from crunchy to soft, I not only could taste the real apple from which it was made, but I was able to feel the texture of an actual apple too. Unlike other dried fruits, Brothers-All-Natural is light and fluffy and a bit less dense than some of it’s competitors.

Brothers-All-Natural fruit crisps only have 40 calories per pouch, and they come in ten flavors, so there is definitely a fruit crisp for every taste! It turns out that the Mickey pouch I grabbed was part of Brothers-All-Natural’s Disney Collection (they come in Princess pouches, too!) The original packaging is much more discreet…but these are so good and so low-cal that not even the most anti-Disney person on earth would be embarrassed to pull out this Mickey snack at work.

Klearly it’s going to take more to konvince Khloé Kardashian to kome to dinner than one blog post. It’s been 24 hours, I’ve yet to hear back from Ms. Odom or her people, and I am not happy about it. I really don’t wear desperation well, and I would just hate for Hollywood’s royal family to feel heckled or irked by my earnest pleas for a dinner date, so this will be my final appeal to Khloé and Lamar to join my friend Katie and her family for a meal at their home in Dallas.

This time Lamar, I’m talking to you: First I must admit that I do not really watch your basketball games. In fact, if I was asked to rate my level of interest in the NBA on a scale of 1-10 I would have to pick a negative number. I am more compelled by this crab than I am by professional basketball. I hear you’re a stellar player though; my dad and my brother often speak of your agility, accuracy, and overall athleticism. Though I’m not usually one to rely on second-hand information, if it means not having to suffer through four quarters of lay-ups and free-throws and mediocre halftime performances, hearsay will suffice.

But LamLam, lucky for me and every other 23-year-old girl in North America, you do not limit your TV appearances to ESPN! Nothing makes my day more than seeing you and your wife on E!, and between you and me, your wedding to Khloé was much classier than Kim’s nuptials/Quinceanera/celebrity block party.

I know you have a busy schedule. Between moving to Texas, devising game plans so the Mavericks will squash the Lakers when they play in February, and figuring out how to avoid an awkward game-day run-in with the man who was your brother-in-law for 72 days, you must be totally stressed. Take it from someone who understands. (So millions of dollars don’t depend on the height of my vertical jump…making photocopies is stressful too, Lamar!) You’ve gotta keep yourself focused and healthy.

That’s why I’d like to recommend Honey Stinger Organic Energy Chews— particularly the pomegranate flavor. I used to eat these things like M&Ms in college, especially when I was studying in the library. With only 160 calories in every 10 chews, Honey Stinger chews are not only delicious and naturally energy-boosting, but also low-cal enough to allow you to eat as many as you need without gaining an ounce (if NBA players worry about that kind of thing…I know food bloggers do.)

Honey Stinger Chews are great for on or off the court– I love to eat them in the office– but if you’re craving something a bit more substantial, you may want to consider accepting Katie’s mom’s dinner invitation. I know yesterday I said she was going to be cooking a Greek meal, and I don’t want to grovel, but I bet she’d be willing to change the menu to whatever you want if you agree to attend. You can even bring Rob if you want!

Hope to see you soon!

Lamar doesn't need any help on the court...but if he's feeling a little tired after the holidays, these are the perfect pick-me-up!

Ok, here’s the thing. I have no right blogging on Skinny Office, because I am that bitch you all hate. Skinny and munching on a Big Mac between meals. If I feel like it, I have a candy bar or two, a loaf of buttered french bread, and then six pieces of American cheese right from the fridge. I don’t gain an ounce. I do not belong to a gym, and I go home if I can’t find a parking spot close to the store. Oh, and I am 42 and have had three fat babies, and can still rock a bikini the day after four full size slices of pizza. So what am I doing here, you ask? It’s about beer, a subject near and dear to my size 4 heart. That’s right, the old carb lovers best friend, the maker of beer bellies and beer goggles, and something you certainly shouldn’t be sipping at your desk at work.

Hello, delicious.

There is always happy hour, though, and today’s SkinnyOffice wants to help you make a wise choice. Being who I am, I have never had any interest in light beer, and even more than that, I think that the social stigma associated with domestic beer makes it comparable to having no front teeth. I prefer a Fancier beer, one I paid too much for and comes with a pretty bottle. I have never held a Budweiser in public. However, that all changed when Bud got classy and came out with the deliciously refreshing Bud Light Lime. It’s fantastically tasty, refreshing, and easy to drink. It has a slight lime flavor, really tastes like beer, and has no watery bitterness like a typical light. It’s in a pretty bottle, and it’s a bonus for me cause I can drink more of them then a regular beer. Bud Light Lime has just 4.2 percent alcohol, 116 calories per 12 ounce bottle, and 8 grams of Carbs. Compare that to a Blue Moon ( I think its feminine enough to order in public and comes with a slice of orange hanging on the glass that makes it looks like a vacation) which has 5.4 percent alcohol, 171 calories and a 13.7 grams of Carbs, and you could have four or five of these clear bottled beauties and still make it to work the next day to eat whatever SkinnyOffice recommends. If this blog ever needs a review of bagels with cream cheese, I’ll be back.

On Saturday, thousands of New Yorkers dressed up in Santa costumes and filled the city’s bars beginning at 8am for the annual drinking event, SantaCon. All day long the Santas hopped from bar to bar spreading holiday cheer and drinking beer (and everything else a bar might have to offer). As all this was going on in Manhattan, Elena and I were having our own sort of holiday adventure in Brooklyn. BROOKLYN. Though neither of us are exactly athletes, and we’re definitely not go-to-an-outer-borough-at-8am-on-a-Saturday kind of girls, we laced up our sneakers, put on our Under Armour, braved the elements (I mean, the subway), and somehow, despite complete unwillingness and disinterest, made it to Prospect Park in time to run The Jingle Bell Jog. It was the first actual race either of us had run in, and believe it or not, we both completed it without incident (although one of our friends who also ran had a bit of a set-back around mile 3.5…)

Pre-race or post-race? I don't remember.

When I got back to Manhattan after the race, I was feeling particularly healthy. So instead of meeting my costumed friends (one friend was wearing a small christmas present attached to a headband) at a nearby watering hole, I went to Duane Reade in search of a less alcoholic celebratory drink. A small can of Ocean Spray Cranberry juice caught my eye, though I was certain it would be more caloric than what I was looking for. When I read the label and saw that it was *SPARKLING* cranberry juice I was ready to overlook the high sugar content I assumed the drink must have and just indulge– after all, I did just finish a “marathon”, according to my doorman (and I didn’t correct him). With trepidation, I turned the small silver can around so I could read the nutrition info. Only 10 calories a can!! I was elated. And the best part is, it’s deliciously refreshing and doesn’t have that lingering artificial sweetener aftertaste that many low-calorie drinks do.

Though I’m a die-hard Hint Water fan, when I’m craving something with a bit more flavor, Diet Ocean Spray Sparkling Cranberry really does the trick!

I think it’s common knowledge that the grape is a pretty average fruit. Eating a grape certainly doesn’t leave you feeling refreshed, like eating a sweet summer watermelon does, and the grape does not possess the apple’s uncanny ability to capture the essence of an entire season with one crisp bite. Grapes don’t have a category, they don’t have a season. Grapes are just…grapes– and as I’m not usually one to settle for mediocrity, I tend to reach for a fruit that’s a bit less, um, pedestrian, when perusing the produce section.

But this was all before I discovered frozen grapes. Frozen grapes are not a new product; they are just ordinary grapes that have been in the freezer for a few hours. It’s hard to believe that the simple act of freezing can transform this uninspired fruit into something that tastes so regal. That’s right. Frozen grapes actually taste like royalty.

Like swallowing velvet.

Non-frozen grapes often taste dry and chalky, but put your grapes in the freezer and they’ll taste like velvet. One of the biggest problems with eating grapes at room temperature is that you run the risk of accidentally grabbing a soft, soggy one. Just stick your grapes in the freezer and problem solved! When frozen, grapes don’t become rock-hard as one might expect. Instead they have a pleasantly firm outside while the inside has a bit of a crunch but still retains its juiciness. Frozen grapes are like the french fries of fruit.

The only thing I love more than a sweet, low-calorie, frozen treat is a sweet, low-calorie, frozen treat that I can eat using only one hand (Shopbop isn’t gonna browse itself, people). And there are even more advantages to sugar-free popsicles. You don’t need a plate, which means you don’t have to wash said plate; it takes a while to eat just one (the Holy Grail of low-calorie food qualities!); and the colors are so bright and pretty, just like me.

You can have the whole box for 180 calories! But...maybe don't.

Popsicles are the perfect snack to eat while you’re at a computer, it’s like they were made for an office or study-room setting. I don’t even want to tell you how many of these I ate during college. Sometimes I stocked up on so many I’d have to take them out of the box in order to fit them all into my freezer (though admittedly, most of my other groceries had to go into the freezer as well). The brand of fruit-flavored popsicles that I always bought and highly recommend is the Popsicle brand, since who could possibly make better popsicles than the company NAMED “Popsicle”?! They only have 15 calories per popsicle, and absolutely zero of anything else remotely nutritious but who cares? Sure, they aren’t the “real fruit” ones with “no preservatives” or whatever, but come on, get over yourself–who are you, Michael Pollan?

And if you eat enough of them, you can make a popsicle-stick house, which could be one of those quirky conversation-starters that you use when you feel uncomfortable at a party.

It was just a typical morning. I was wandering around a deli, doing everything in my power not to arrive at work a moment early, looking to find a SkinnySnack for that afternoon. I passed some Soy Crisps, and paused to consider them, but then I spotted a little friendly-looking pouch that had a very appealing picture of an apple on the front, and it said “City Snacks.” Well, like any girl who grows up in New Jersey and moves to NYC, I call myself a City Girl, so it was a done deal!

As good as that sliced fruit looks, I think it's the checkmark at the bottom that really put me over the edge. Somebody approves...

Basically this Apple City Snack is just dried apple. If you’ve ever had dried fruit before you may THINK you know what I mean but you don’t. Because this isn’t the kind of soft, chewy, kind of nauseatingly sweet dried apple snack that you eat a huge plastic container of and then get sick from every day in order to crash diet for senior prom. (Like, you know, hypothetically speaking.) No, these are light and kind of chip-like in that they’re just slightly crispy. I think Georgia, who also loves City Snacks, best analyzed the texture: “It like, melts in your mouth, and it’s just there and it’s crunchy and then you hold it, like savor it, but it just melts and then it’s not there.”

City Snacks comes in 7 varieties: Strawberry, Peach, Banana, Banana and Strawberry (no doubt for the indecisive SkinnyWorker), Apple, Pineapple, and Pear. Depending on which fruit, one pouch ranges from 40 to 75 calories–what a bargain! Another bonus is that they are reminiscent of astronaut food, which admittedly I haven’t ever exactly tried but hello, I’ve SEEN Apollo 13.

So grab some City Snacks for your five-minute-oh-oops-it’s-been-half-an-hour Gilt Groupe break and you’ll be able to snack while feeling confident that you can fit into that Alice & Olivia dress you’ve been eyeing.